Irrigator



Dec. l5, 1925 C. E. ZIEGLER IRRIGATOR Filed Feb. 27. 1925 lil lil)

Hilalented llee. lli, lllllil.

UNITED STATES lldllil @PATENT OFFICE.

CHARLES E. ZIEJGLER. OF PIT .SBU'EGH, lJENNSYLVAlt'IA, ASSIGNOR 0F ONEHALF T0 XVILEAM C. ARTHUR, OF PTTSB'URGl-I. PENNSYLVANIA..

IRRIGATUR.

Application lecl February 2*?, 1925.

To all lifi/1.0m et may macerie/ Be it known that l, CHARLES E. Zrnonnn, a citizen oll the United States, and a resi dont oiI Pittsburgh, in the county ot Alleggjl'ieny and State of Pennsylvania, have invented a new and usetul ln'iproveinent in lrripgators, ot which the lolhnving is a speeitication.

lhis invention relates to vaginal and reeto-colon irrigators, and its general object is to so improve their construction that they may be rnore easily operated and will not rapidly wear out, and that their intended :functions may be greatly enhanced and their liehls ol usetulness enlarged.

tligieei'l'ic objects are to provide irrigatore having; nozzles constructed to include euti oll's or valves lior eontrollin ilow oli irrigating fluids. and having nozzles provided with ineans rior sealing` the entrances ot organs into which the nozzles are inserted.

"..he invention is :illustrated in the aoco-1npanying drawings, oit which Fig. l is a longitudinal central sectional view ot a rectocolon irrigator, the plane of view being indicated by the line l-I, Fig. 2; Fig. 2 a longitudinal central sectional view ot the irrigatori` shown in Fig. l, the plane of view being` at riffht angles to that of Fig. l, and indicated by the line HMH, Fig. l; Fig. 3 a transverse sectional view taken on the line lll-hlll', ll" l; and Fig. 4 a view correl olfv a vaginal irrigator. f W ,1 Matits olthe type here con- .f d usually roni'fnises a rubbiffr or vl rontainrr oil i itil lluid, a ralber tube leading l'roni its bottoni, and a nozzl i attaehral lo the outer end. olf the rubber tribe, the nozzle being variously constructed. depending upon the lnirtieular purpose for which it .is intended to be used. Flow through the nozzle is usually controlled by a springI clip attached to the rubber tube, whieh clip is inconvenient to operate because it is not at the places where the user holds the nozzle. Furthermore, the clip breaks thev wall oil the tube, artieularly when the eut-oll' is allowed to reniain in closed position tor an extended period ot time. i

@ne leature et this invention concerns the provision olf an irrigator nozzle having its outer end provided with an inlet openingl and its inne-r end with an outlet opening,

Serial No. 11,988.

and being provided intermediate ol2 these openings with a valve lor controlling 'loiv ot irrigating fluid. In the illustrative ernbodinient oit this r'feature oli the invention, the nozzle comprises an inner tubular stein l having an inlet 2 at its outer end, to which a rubber hose 3 leading from a container oit irrigating fluid may be attached by a suit able couplingsL which may be screw-threaded interiorly to engage external threads at the end oil the stein. 'lhe stein, which has an outlet (i at its inner end, is mounted within a sleeve 5 in such inanner that it may be moved with relation to the sleeve to control :flow through the nozzle. Preferably the stein is mounted ttor longitudinal movement within the sleeve, and preferably it is provided at its outer end 'with a valve head i' which overhantigs the inner end of sleeve 5 and seals such end when the stein is in the position indicated in Fig. l. To effect an irrigating flow through the nozzle, the stein is moved inwardly to the position indicated in Fig. 2, which shows outlet 6 above the inner end oli sleeve 5. To prevent the flow ot irrirorating)1 fluid baelrwardly between stein l and sleeve 5, the outer end oli' the sleeve preferably counter-bored or enlarged interiorly to torin a seat 8 Jfor the inner end et an enlargement 9 of the stein adjacent to its head 7. By so construetin@` the nozzle, Vflow through it may be easily controlled by merely rnovinp,l stein lv within sleeve 5, and this may conveniently be done by the hand olt the user holdingv the` nozzle.

.f-i further Vltetinfe ot the invention has to do with the provision olf means ilior sealingl the entrances olf organs into which irrigator nozzles are inserted. llor this purpose the nozzle is provided with a laterally extending shield which is preferably shaped to con Ytorni to the. contour ot the anatomy at the entrance of an organ.

For recto-colon irrigatore such as shown in Figs. l, 2 and 3, there niay be attached. to sleeve 5 a shield ll ol? the genera coutour indicated in the drawings, the shape being that ot' the anatomy at the anal opening. In use this shield elieetively closes the anus against leakage or premature expulsion ot irrigating fluid,

In addition to cleansing the bowel in the manner described, the recto-colon irrigator also provides adequate means for apvilyinir all heat through the rectum to inflamed pelvic organs in the female, and to the seminal vesicles and prostate gland in the male, the rectum in each instance being filled With hot water which may be retained by the shield, and the operation being repeated by an additional supply of ht Water as often as may be necessary. Furthermore, the provision of a shield for closing the anal opening is of material advantage in giving nutritive enemata to be retained, and in the administration of drugs through the rectum When the stomach is not retentive.

In Fig. t of the drawings there is shown a nozzle for a vaginal irrigator comprising an inner stein l and a sleeve 5, these elements being constructed to form a cut-off or valve the same as illustrated in Figs. ll

and 2. For sealing the vaginal entrance a shield ll is attached to and projects laterally from sleeve 5a, the shield preferably being in the form of a circular disk. The shield seals the vaginal entrance against leakage or premature expulsions of an irrigating fluid and until the vaginal Walls become separated and all folds or cr vices distended. In other Words, the shield retains irrigating fluid in the vagina so that the fluid becomes effective to expand the vaginal Walls and bring the antiseptic content of the fluid into full contact with infected areas long enough to affect the microorganisms in the intended manner. Also, in cases where the application of heat to inflamed parts through the vagina is desirable, the vagina may be filled with hot Water and the Water retained in contact with the parts so long as desired.

According to the provisions of the patent statute I have explained the principle and operation of my invention, and have speciflcally described and illustrated what I now consider to represent its best embodiments. However, I desire to have it understood that, within the scope of the appended claims, the invention may be practiced by other forms of construction than thoseparticularly illustrated and described.

I claim as my invention:

l. An irrigator for the purposes described, comprising a nozzle formed of a. sleeve closed throughout its longitudinal extent and open at its ends, and a tubular stem mounted for longitudinal movement with relation to said sleeve and provided at its outer end with an inlet opening' and having its side Walls provided With an outlet port, the inner end of said stem being closed and being provided beyond said outlet port with an offset valve head cooperating With the inner end of said sleeve to control flow of irri gating fluid through the nozzle.

2. An irrigator for the purposes described, comprising a nozzle formed of' a sleeve open at its ends, and a tubular stem mounted for longitudinal movement with relation to said sleeve and provided at its outer end with an inlet opening and having its side wall provided with. an outlet port, the.` inner end of said stein being` closed and' being provided With aA valve head cooperating with the inner end of said sleeve to control flow of irrigating fluid through the nozzle, and the interior of said sleeve and the exterior of said stem being provided With cooperating shoulders to prevent the rearward flow of irrigating fluid when said valve head closes the outer end of the sleeve.

3. An irrigator forthepurposes described. comprising a nozzle formed of a sleeve closed throughout its longitudinal extent and open at its ends, and a tubular stem mounted for longitudinal movement ivitli relation to said sleeve and provided at its outer end With an inlet opening and having its side Wall provided With an outlet port, the inner end of said stem being closed and being provided beyond said outlet port With an offset valve head cooperating With the inner end of said sleeve to control flow of irrigating fluid through the nozzle, and the outer end of the sleeve being provided with a laterally extending shield formed integrally with the sleeve.

In testimony ivhereof, I sign my name.

CHARLES El. ZIEGLER. 

